The unresolved situation in Kosovo has serious implications for the European Union (EU), for the United Nations (UN), for NATO and for regional stability. Adoption by the UN Security Council of a plan for supervised independence for Kosovo, formulated in May this year by the Finnish negotiator Ahtisaari, was blocked by Russia and China. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon then gave the parties until December 10 to negotiate a new solution. These negotiations have not (yet) resulted in a mutually acceptable resolution for Kosovo’s future status. The failure of the international community to agree on a way forward after December 10 risks renewed violence, refugee flows, bloodshed and destabilisation on the edges of Europe. It also risks undermining the unity of Europe and the legitimacy of the UN.
The unresolved situation in Kosovo has serious implications for the European Union (EU), for the United Nations (UN), for NATO and for regional stability. Adoption by the UN Security Council of a plan for supervised independence for Kosovo, formulated in May this year by the Finnish negotiator Ahtisaari, was blocked by Russia and China. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon then gave the parties until December 10 to negotiate a new solution. These negotiations have not (yet) resulted in a mutually acceptable resolution for Kosovo’s future status. The failure of the international community to agree on a way forward after December 10 risks renewed violence, refugee flows, bloodshed and destabilisation on the edges of Europe. It also risks undermining the unity of Europe and the legitimacy of the UN.